Funny thing about Kenny's distaste for Julia Sweeney.... Because they probably have a lot in common...As with friends... no doubt.For instance... one can imagine Thanksgiving at Kenny's digs... much like at Julia's.Quentin Tarantino, for sure. (Or so my tabloid reading tells me.)Harvey Keitel.Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennet... Sam Harris...A coterie of scientists from Harvard, (E.O.Wilson perhaps..) from the Univesity of Chicago and the Fermi Labs.. from Northwestern and the molecular biology division, or the "France in the Second Empire," archives..Jill Sobule, Adam Sandler...The entire Board of the Freedom From Religion Foundation.All with wives... kids... manuscripts, anecdotes.

JUST LIKE AT KENNY's ... exactly like at Kenny's.Sadly, Chirstopher Hitchen's last attendance was (or so I've heard) in 2010...although as Kenny can probably tell you from various get-togethers at Kenny's place, Hitchens WAS not only brilliant but the most fun..So... just like that... Kenny and Julia...Two peas from the proverbial pod.So what is Kenny grousing about.?Why they might even have the same publisher!Even the same editor!!And who knows... his advances (little modest devil that he is) might even be larger than hers.

NMB

.

Skepticism: " Norma, you poor sad lonely alcoholic. You entire life is devoted to interrupting other people's posts on this forum, regardless of the topic, to tell them what's wrong with them. The irony is, here you are doing it again, with this very post. Your fanciful card games, movie sojourns and exciting overseas trips, that all take place within the four walls of an aged care retirement home, do not suggest your own children offered you the care, I gave my parents."

nmblum wrote:Funny thing about Kenny's distaste for Julia Sweeney.... Because they probably have a lot in common...As with friends... no doubt.For instance... one can imagine Thanksgiving at Kenny's digs... much like at Julia's.Quentin Tarantino, for sure. (Or so my tabloid reading tells me.)Harvey Keitel.Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennet... Sam Harris...A coterie of scientists from Harvard, (E.O.Wilson perhaps..) from the Univesity of Chicago and the Fermi Labs.. from Northwestern and the molecular biology division, or the "France in the Second Empire," archives..Jill Sobule, Adam Sandler...The entire Board of the Freedom From Religion Foundation.All with wives... kids... manuscripts, anecdotes.

JUST LIKE AT KENNY's ... exactly like at Kenny's.Sadly, Chirstopher Hitchen's last attendance was (or so I've heard) in 2010...although as Kenny can probably tell you from various get-togethers at Kenny's place, Hitchens WAS not only brilliant but the most fun..So... just like that... Kenny and Julia...Two peas from the proverbial pod.So what is Kenny grousing about.?Why they might even have the same publisher!Even the same editor!!And who knows... his advances (little modest devil that he is) might even be larger than hers.

NMB

.

Time to take your medication dear.

"Propaganda is a monologue which seeks not a response, but an echo." (W.H. Auden) "Given time and plenty of paper, philosophers can prove anything." (Robert Heinlein)"The map is not the territory." (Alfred Korzybski)“You’re in the desert, you see a tortoise lying on its back, struggling, and you’re not helping — why is that?" (Bladerunner)

nmblum wrote:Funny thing about Kenny's distaste for Julia Sweeney.... Because they probably have a lot in common...As with friends... no doubt.For instance... one can imagine Thanksgiving at Kenny's digs... much like at Julia's.Quentin Tarantino, for sure. (Or so my tabloid reading tells me.)Harvey Keitel.Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennet... Sam Harris...A coterie of scientists from Harvard, (E.O.Wilson perhaps..) from the Univesity of Chicago and the Fermi Labs.. from Northwestern and the molecular biology division, or the "France in the Second Empire," archives..Jill Sobule, Adam Sandler...The entire Board of the Freedom From Religion Foundation.All with wives... kids... manuscripts, anecdotes.

JUST LIKE AT KENNY's ... exactly like at Kenny's.Sadly, Chirstopher Hitchen's last attendance was (or so I've heard) in 2010...although as Kenny can probably tell you from various get-togethers at Kenny's place, Hitchens WAS not only brilliant but the most fun..So... just like that... Kenny and Julia...Two peas from the proverbial pod.So what is Kenny grousing about.?Why they might even have the same publisher!Even the same editor!!And who knows... his advances (little modest devil that he is) might even be larger than hers.

NMB

.

Time to take your medication dear.

So you've said...::yawn::And said ::yawn::And said : yawn::

::Yawn::

Norma Manna Blum

Skepticism: " Norma, you poor sad lonely alcoholic. You entire life is devoted to interrupting other people's posts on this forum, regardless of the topic, to tell them what's wrong with them. The irony is, here you are doing it again, with this very post. Your fanciful card games, movie sojourns and exciting overseas trips, that all take place within the four walls of an aged care retirement home, do not suggest your own children offered you the care, I gave my parents."

nmblum wrote:Funny thing about Kenny's distaste for Julia Sweeney.... Because they probably have a lot in common...As with friends... no doubt.For instance... one can imagine Thanksgiving at Kenny's digs... much like at Julia's.Quentin Tarantino, for sure. (Or so my tabloid reading tells me.)Harvey Keitel.Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennet... Sam Harris...A coterie of scientists from Harvard, (E.O.Wilson perhaps..) from the Univesity of Chicago and the Fermi Labs.. from Northwestern and the molecular biology division, or the "France in the Second Empire," archives..Jill Sobule, Adam Sandler...The entire Board of the Freedom From Religion Foundation.All with wives... kids... manuscripts, anecdotes.

JUST LIKE AT KENNY's ... exactly like at Kenny's.Sadly, Chirstopher Hitchen's last attendance was (or so I've heard) in 2010...although as Kenny can probably tell you from various get-togethers at Kenny's place, Hitchens WAS not only brilliant but the most fun..So... just like that... Kenny and Julia...Two peas from the proverbial pod.So what is Kenny grousing about.?Why they might even have the same publisher!Even the same editor!!And who knows... his advances (little modest devil that he is) might even be larger than hers.

NMB

.

Time to take your medication dear.

So you've said...::yawn::And said ::yawn::And said : yawn::

::Yawn::

Norma Manna Blum

Sorry, medication and a nap.

"Propaganda is a monologue which seeks not a response, but an echo." (W.H. Auden) "Given time and plenty of paper, philosophers can prove anything." (Robert Heinlein)"The map is not the territory." (Alfred Korzybski)“You’re in the desert, you see a tortoise lying on its back, struggling, and you’re not helping — why is that?" (Bladerunner)

nmblum wrote:Funny thing about Kenny's distaste for Julia Sweeney.... Because they probably have a lot in common...As with friends... no doubt.For instance... one can imagine Thanksgiving at Kenny's digs... much like at Julia's.Quentin Tarantino, for sure. (Or so my tabloid reading tells me.)Harvey Keitel.Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennet... Sam Harris...A coterie of scientists from Harvard, (E.O.Wilson perhaps..) from the Univesity of Chicago and the Fermi Labs.. from Northwestern and the molecular biology division, or the "France in the Second Empire," archives..Jill Sobule, Adam Sandler...The entire Board of the Freedom From Religion Foundation.All with wives... kids... manuscripts, anecdotes.

JUST LIKE AT KENNY's ... exactly like at Kenny's.Sadly, Chirstopher Hitchen's last attendance was (or so I've heard) in 2010...although as Kenny can probably tell you from various get-togethers at Kenny's place, Hitchens WAS not only brilliant but the most fun..So... just like that... Kenny and Julia...Two peas from the proverbial pod.So what is Kenny grousing about.?Why they might even have the same publisher!Even the same editor!!And who knows... his advances (little modest devil that he is) might even be larger than hers.

NMB

.

Time to take your medication dear.

So you've said...::yawn::And said ::yawn::And said : yawn::

::Yawn::

Norma Manna Blum

Sorry, medication and a nap.

::YAAAAAAWN::

Norma Manna Blum

Skepticism: " Norma, you poor sad lonely alcoholic. You entire life is devoted to interrupting other people's posts on this forum, regardless of the topic, to tell them what's wrong with them. The irony is, here you are doing it again, with this very post. Your fanciful card games, movie sojourns and exciting overseas trips, that all take place within the four walls of an aged care retirement home, do not suggest your own children offered you the care, I gave my parents."

Before your time Gord. When you could ask a question and get a scholarly essay in response. Or least a decent link that backed up what was said with archaeology or a psychological study. Now it's just trolls all the way down. At least they are the furry funny kind like the muppets from that movie with David Bowie, Dark Crystal or something.

Before your time Gord. When you could ask a question and get a scholarly essay in response. Or least a decent link that backed up what was said with archaeology or a psychological study. Now it's just trolls all the way down. At least they are the furry funny kind like the muppets from that movie with David Bowie, Dark Crystal or something.

Wouldn't it be the ultimate irony,Lausten, if you and I ended up nostalgic for one another's foibles?Sometimes I miss Jeff D. and Herk, and some others, with actual heartache, as if they had been influential teachers in my youth........ or lovers who left pleasant as well as stimulating memories rather ethan the usual vituperation.Although, sadly , time, the ultimate thief, has taken them away, one of them forever.

But hope springs eternal... and the pendulum of history persists in matters large and small: there HAS to be another wave of contributors on the horizon.Who actually leave their houses, read books, listen to all kinds of music, go to real movie theaters, travel to foreign climes and don't depend on one-lines to make friends or vanquish foes.And aren't turning one another into the thought police, or requesting immediate ex-communication based on imagined heresies (against what and whom yet to be determined).NMB

Skepticism: " Norma, you poor sad lonely alcoholic. You entire life is devoted to interrupting other people's posts on this forum, regardless of the topic, to tell them what's wrong with them. The irony is, here you are doing it again, with this very post. Your fanciful card games, movie sojourns and exciting overseas trips, that all take place within the four walls of an aged care retirement home, do not suggest your own children offered you the care, I gave my parents."

"Propaganda is a monologue which seeks not a response, but an echo." (W.H. Auden) "Given time and plenty of paper, philosophers can prove anything." (Robert Heinlein)"The map is not the territory." (Alfred Korzybski)“You’re in the desert, you see a tortoise lying on its back, struggling, and you’re not helping — why is that?" (Bladerunner)

Skepticism: " Norma, you poor sad lonely alcoholic. You entire life is devoted to interrupting other people's posts on this forum, regardless of the topic, to tell them what's wrong with them. The irony is, here you are doing it again, with this very post. Your fanciful card games, movie sojourns and exciting overseas trips, that all take place within the four walls of an aged care retirement home, do not suggest your own children offered you the care, I gave my parents."

"Propaganda is a monologue which seeks not a response, but an echo." (W.H. Auden) "Given time and plenty of paper, philosophers can prove anything." (Robert Heinlein)"The map is not the territory." (Alfred Korzybski)“You’re in the desert, you see a tortoise lying on its back, struggling, and you’re not helping — why is that?" (Bladerunner)

Oh MY!! Can one assume this is the offering of Brad Pitt, the husband of Angelina Joie?Big, hunky, juicy sexy guy, but with the charisma of FDR?A seducer of women, and a leader of men?

LOL Eat your puny and pathetic hearts out... Because no matter how desperate you are, and to what level of humiliation you allow yourselves to descend... it matters little.Because I will, ten years dead, look better, and think more clearly than either of you do now.Based on the evidence?Guaranteed.

NMB

..

Skepticism: " Norma, you poor sad lonely alcoholic. You entire life is devoted to interrupting other people's posts on this forum, regardless of the topic, to tell them what's wrong with them. The irony is, here you are doing it again, with this very post. Your fanciful card games, movie sojourns and exciting overseas trips, that all take place within the four walls of an aged care retirement home, do not suggest your own children offered you the care, I gave my parents."

Great detective work... what a productive day!!However, I am actually OLDER than the woman in your chosen photograph... probably by about ten, perhaps even 20 years..AND I also wear suits much like the scientist about whom you have already made homophobic jokes.... as if it were a form of wit.But... I'm sure there must be SOME area of mind in which you shine.Or at least show some sign of life.

Norma Manna Blum

Skepticism: " Norma, you poor sad lonely alcoholic. You entire life is devoted to interrupting other people's posts on this forum, regardless of the topic, to tell them what's wrong with them. The irony is, here you are doing it again, with this very post. Your fanciful card games, movie sojourns and exciting overseas trips, that all take place within the four walls of an aged care retirement home, do not suggest your own children offered you the care, I gave my parents."

Oh MY!! Can one assume this is the offering of Brad Pitt, the husband of Angelina Joie?Big, hunky, juicy sexy guy, but with the charisma of FDR?A seducer of women, and a leader of men?

LOL Eat your puny and pathetic hearts out... Because no matter how desperate you are, and to what level of humiliation you allow yourselves to descend... it matters little.Because I will, ten years dead, look better, and think more clearly than either of you do now.Based on the evidence?Guaranteed.

NMB

..

You're rrreeeeaaaallllly preoccupied with imagined relative status, aren't you? Is there a particular reason for that, or do you not even realize that you're almost always trying to somehow elevate yourself above others?

It's comical really, in a medium which doesn't lend itself to such things, or verification of those claims. It's odd, in that I don't see you anyone else joining this competition. It's a little sad, because for all of the oddity and comedy I think it's really most of what your personality boils down to.

"Propaganda is a monologue which seeks not a response, but an echo." (W.H. Auden) "Given time and plenty of paper, philosophers can prove anything." (Robert Heinlein)"The map is not the territory." (Alfred Korzybski)“You’re in the desert, you see a tortoise lying on its back, struggling, and you’re not helping — why is that?" (Bladerunner)

You actually don't know what you are talking about. They had a separate forum, they merged it with the Skeptic forum. It's technically its own sub-forum. It's why Norma can post what ever the {!#%@} she wants in the Letting Go of God sub-forum without it violating some organization of topic rule. She and Lausten duked it out for a long time before you came in and thought you could correct them on {!#%@}.

I actually like you, Daedalus. I like much of your contributions. I'm a Stargate nerd, so I like your handle. I'm asking that you give it some time to figure out the dynamics of the forum, what people here are all about, that sort of thing, before haranguing folks. Norma will bite back on her own, she and I went a few rounds once upon a time. Now I find her irreplaceable. I'm quite fond of her. I still don't want to pick sides, so I am asking you to give this place a look around for the gent's before pissing in the planter.

You actually don't know what you are talking about. They had a separate forum, they merged it with the Skeptic forum. It's technically its own sub-forum. It's why Norma can post what ever the {!#%@} she wants in the Letting Go of God sub-forum without it violating some organization of topic rule. She and Lausten duked it out for a long time before you came in and thought you could correct them on {!#%@}.

You're right, I had no idea. By the same token... so what? You're telling me then that they're bitching about the good old days they voluntarily ended. Oh, boo hoo.

fromthehills wrote:I actually like you, Daedalus. I like much of your contributions. I'm a Stargate nerd, so I like your handle.

Probably not the time to point out it's a Joyce reference, huh? That being said, I'm also a Stargate nerd, so there is that.

fromthehills wrote:I'm asking that you give it some time to figure out the dynamics of the forum, what people here are all about, that sort of thing, before haranguing folks. Norma will bite back on her own, she and I went a few rounds once upon a time. Now I find her irreplaceable. I'm quite fond of her. I still don't want to pick sides, so I am asking you to give this place a look around for the gent's before pissing in the planter.

Sure, that's reasonable, but this has nothing to do with forum dynamics or politics. Norma strikes me as the usual run of angry bully, and unless her contributions include a cure for cancer or unified field theory, there really is no excuse for that. Two things I really detest in life are bigots, and bullies.

"Propaganda is a monologue which seeks not a response, but an echo." (W.H. Auden) "Given time and plenty of paper, philosophers can prove anything." (Robert Heinlein)"The map is not the territory." (Alfred Korzybski)“You’re in the desert, you see a tortoise lying on its back, struggling, and you’re not helping — why is that?" (Bladerunner)

Daedalus wrote:Two things I really detest in life are bigots, and bullies.

We have that in common, but I have a few more. Anyway, I find Norma to be neither of these things. Maybe a bit with Eggs, sometimes. I don't know why. I don't think you are a bully either, but it still seems that anywhere that Norma posts, you are there to {!#%@} with her. Which looks like bullying. She and Lausten were having a perfectly nice conversation, but yet there you are to {!#%@} with them. Please explain how that is different than online bullying.

On your handle, we could go back to the Greek thing, too, but I assumed the Stargate ship.

And now back to the regular programming.... if the implication of Julia Sweeney as a monster (sic) can be referred to as regular.Here is a recent (sometime in June, I think) interview, Julia at the L.A. studios of the Huffington Post.Sound like a monster to anyone here... or someone who isn't smart, funny, charming and above all good-hearted and generous?As well as admired by so many for just those qualities as well as enormous wit?Speak up....

Skepticism: " Norma, you poor sad lonely alcoholic. You entire life is devoted to interrupting other people's posts on this forum, regardless of the topic, to tell them what's wrong with them. The irony is, here you are doing it again, with this very post. Your fanciful card games, movie sojourns and exciting overseas trips, that all take place within the four walls of an aged care retirement home, do not suggest your own children offered you the care, I gave my parents."

Daedalus wrote:Two things I really detest in life are bigots, and bullies.

We have that in common, but I have a few more. Anyway, I find Norma to be neither of these things. Maybe a bit with Eggs, sometimes. I don't know why. I don't think you are a bully either, but it still seems that anywhere that Norma posts, you are there to {!#%@} with her. Which looks like bullying. She and Lausten were having a perfectly nice conversation, but yet there you are to {!#%@} with them. Please explain how that is different than online bullying.

Sure.

For one, I didn't simply track her along threads to give her grief. She decided to... once again... write a scree directed at Kenny, and for some reason I decided to give her a bit of grief... for that. After all, the guy has her on ignore, and while he certainly is more than capable of dealing with her, nobody should be allowed that level of freedom to be an unmitigated ass. Nobody can stop her, but I can at least attach a minimal cost to the business of being an unrelenting dick.

In short, a bully engages in self-aggrandizing behavior at the cost of others, for the sake of that behavior. As you've observed, while I can be harsh, annoying, abrasive, and rude... I don't do that.

fromthehills wrote:On your handle, we could go back to the Greek thing, too, but I assumed the Stargate ship.

And again, apart from this issue, I've enjoyed your company here.

There is that indeed, and although I don't really know you well even by internet standards, you seem like a stand-up fellow.

"Propaganda is a monologue which seeks not a response, but an echo." (W.H. Auden) "Given time and plenty of paper, philosophers can prove anything." (Robert Heinlein)"The map is not the territory." (Alfred Korzybski)“You’re in the desert, you see a tortoise lying on its back, struggling, and you’re not helping — why is that?" (Bladerunner)

Daedalus wrote:Two things I really detest in life are bigots, and bullies.

We have that in common, but I have a few more. Anyway, I find Norma to be neither of these things. Maybe a bit with Eggs, sometimes. I don't know why. I don't think you are a bully either, but it still seems that anywhere that Norma posts, you are there to {!#%@} with her. Which looks like bullying. She and Lausten were having a perfectly nice conversation, but yet there you are to {!#%@} with them. Please explain how that is different than online bullying.

Sure.

For one, I didn't simply track her along threads to give her grief. She decided to... once again... write a scree directed at Kenny, and for some reason I decided to give her a bit of grief... for that. After all, the guy has her on ignore, and while he certainly is more than capable of dealing with her, nobody should be allowed that level of freedom to be an unmitigated ass. Nobody can stop her, but I can at least attach a minimal cost to the business of being an unrelenting dick.

In short, a bully engages in self-aggrandizing behavior at the cost of others, for the sake of that behavior. As you've observed, while I can be harsh, annoying, abrasive, and rude... I don't do that.

fromthehills wrote:On your handle, we could go back to the Greek thing, too, but I assumed the Stargate ship.

And again, apart from this issue, I've enjoyed your company here.

There is that indeed, and although I don't really know you well even by internet standards, you seem like a stand-up fellow.

Don't flatter yourself.You are NOT, or at least not in any way that matters, given your insignificance, either harsh, annoying, abrasive OR rude.You would have to have an actual presence, genuine verbal skills, control of y our own gas, to be any of those things.And now if you don't mind, I'll allow you the privacy to keep kissing ass, while I go to hear some live music...... just for the life-affirming aspect of it.

Norma Manna Blum

Skepticism: " Norma, you poor sad lonely alcoholic. You entire life is devoted to interrupting other people's posts on this forum, regardless of the topic, to tell them what's wrong with them. The irony is, here you are doing it again, with this very post. Your fanciful card games, movie sojourns and exciting overseas trips, that all take place within the four walls of an aged care retirement home, do not suggest your own children offered you the care, I gave my parents."

Daedalus wrote:Two things I really detest in life are bigots, and bullies.

We have that in common, but I have a few more. Anyway, I find Norma to be neither of these things. Maybe a bit with Eggs, sometimes. I don't know why. I don't think you are a bully either, but it still seems that anywhere that Norma posts, you are there to {!#%@} with her. Which looks like bullying. She and Lausten were having a perfectly nice conversation, but yet there you are to {!#%@} with them. Please explain how that is different than online bullying.

Sure.

For one, I didn't simply track her along threads to give her grief. She decided to... once again... write a scree directed at Kenny, and for some reason I decided to give her a bit of grief... for that. After all, the guy has her on ignore, and while he certainly is more than capable of dealing with her, nobody should be allowed that level of freedom to be an unmitigated ass. Nobody can stop her, but I can at least attach a minimal cost to the business of being an unrelenting dick.

In short, a bully engages in self-aggrandizing behavior at the cost of others, for the sake of that behavior. As you've observed, while I can be harsh, annoying, abrasive, and rude... I don't do that.

fromthehills wrote:On your handle, we could go back to the Greek thing, too, but I assumed the Stargate ship.

And again, apart from this issue, I've enjoyed your company here.

There is that indeed, and although I don't really know you well even by internet standards, you seem like a stand-up fellow.

Don't flatter yourself.You are NOT, or at least not in any way that matters, given your insignificance, either harsh, annoying, abrasive OR rude.You would have to have an actual presence, genuine verbal skills, control of y our own gas, to be any of those things.And now if you don't mind, I'll allow you the privacy to keep kissing ass, while I go to hear some live music...... just for the life-affirming aspect of it.

Norma Manna Blum

More of that hollow attempt to self-aggrandize by demeaning others, eh Normie? It really is more pathetic and obvious than I think you realize...

"Propaganda is a monologue which seeks not a response, but an echo." (W.H. Auden) "Given time and plenty of paper, philosophers can prove anything." (Robert Heinlein)"The map is not the territory." (Alfred Korzybski)“You’re in the desert, you see a tortoise lying on its back, struggling, and you’re not helping — why is that?" (Bladerunner)

Gord wrote:I miss a bunch of the old posters too. Why doesn't Herk come by anymore?

My guess is Herk has life pressures. He hasn't posted at his own blog since January. Or, he just moved on. You can only be "letting" go of God for so long, eventually you're done.

There also used to be more regular Christians posting. We would go a few weeks of just reading whatever science articles caught Norma's eye, then one would come along with a new theory of numerology, or how DNA is a code, or how being a Christian makes you happier, oh wait, that last one was me. Anyway, we'd have our fun intellectually pummeling them into the virtual ground and they'd go away. Herk was especially good at spotting a cut and paste William Lane Craig argument from someone claiming they were open minded and curious. We would also get young people who appeared to be using us to fulfill an assignment from seminary school to go argue apologetics.

Maybe we got a reputation as a place where no crap would be taken or maybe we started looking like a really bad gathering of shirttail cousins on Thanksgiving Day. Either way, it's not as enjoyable as it once was.

Gord wrote:I miss a bunch of the old posters too. Why doesn't Herk come by anymore?

My guess is Herk has life pressures. He hasn't posted at his own blog since January. Or, he just moved on. You can only be "letting" go of God for so long, eventually you're done.

There also used to be more regular Christians posting. We would go a few weeks of just reading whatever science articles caught Norma's eye, then one would come along with a new theory of numerology, or how DNA is a code, or how being a Christian makes you happier, oh wait, that last one was me. Anyway, we'd have our fun intellectually pummeling them into the virtual ground and they'd go away. Herk was especially good at spotting a cut and paste William Lane Craig argument from someone claiming they were open minded and curious. We would also get young people who appeared to be using us to fulfill an assignment from seminary school to go argue apologetics.

Maybe we got a reputation as a place where no crap would be taken or maybe we started looking like a really bad gathering of shirttail cousins on Thanksgiving Day. Either way, it's not as enjoyable as it once was.

But look at it this way, Lausten...We have learned not only to appreciate each other, but that the admiration and respect may always have been present, hidden perhaps in the heat of the day...and there was certainly no "outing" or running to the moderator with screams of "get this guy OUT of here!!" That's not likely to happen again in the present environment..... because the heat of the day is all there is...There's no THERE there now.. Issues are secondary, and personal defensiveness is all that is apparent.But again... as the poet said " hope springs eternal in the human breast..."

NMB

Skepticism: " Norma, you poor sad lonely alcoholic. You entire life is devoted to interrupting other people's posts on this forum, regardless of the topic, to tell them what's wrong with them. The irony is, here you are doing it again, with this very post. Your fanciful card games, movie sojourns and exciting overseas trips, that all take place within the four walls of an aged care retirement home, do not suggest your own children offered you the care, I gave my parents."

Matt Dillahunty and my big brother have said something to me that no one else ever has and I think very few people appreciate. That is, people in your life who disagree with you on important issues, but are still willing to maintain a relationship and continue to discuss those issues, are special and important people to keep in your life.

I wouldn't recommend a life populated only with people like that. Friends that put up with your crap might be more important, but it's not a contest. You get the idea.

Daedalus wrote:In short, a bully engages in self-aggrandizing behavior at the cost of others, for the sake of that behavior. As you've observed, while I can be harsh, annoying, abrasive, and rude... I don't do that.

Shall I cite all your recent responses to Sweetpea by way of refutation? Even following him/her/it to threads where he/she/it is the only participant?

You have made some good contributions and display a fun sense of humour. Maybe a bit more Bruce Banner and a bit less Hulk, though?

PS. I appreciate Norma's witty acerbity too.

. . . with the satisfied air of a man who thinks he has an idea of his own because he has commented on the idea of another . . . - Alexandre Dumas 'The Count of Monte Cristo"

There is no statement so absurd that it has not been uttered by some philosopher. - Cicero

Daedalus wrote:In short, a bully engages in self-aggrandizing behavior at the cost of others, for the sake of that behavior. As you've observed, while I can be harsh, annoying, abrasive, and rude... I don't do that.

Shall I cite all your recent responses to Sweetpea by way of refutation? Even following him/her/it to threads where he/she/it is the only participant?

You have made some good contributions and display a fun sense of humour. Maybe a bit more Bruce Banner and a bit less Hulk, though?

PS. I appreciate Norma's witty acerbity too.

Countertrolling has a rich and storied history that my people worship as their sun god. Besides, where's the self-aggrandizement? Calling a troll a troll and pointing out their trolling behavior is hardly self-aggrandizing.

P.S. "Acerbic" is great. Nasty for the sake of being nasty is just... nasty.

P.P.S. Please do cite my responses to Sweetshitsmcgee... I could use a good chuckle.

"Propaganda is a monologue which seeks not a response, but an echo." (W.H. Auden) "Given time and plenty of paper, philosophers can prove anything." (Robert Heinlein)"The map is not the territory." (Alfred Korzybski)“You’re in the desert, you see a tortoise lying on its back, struggling, and you’re not helping — why is that?" (Bladerunner)

Daedalus wrote:In short, a bully engages in self-aggrandizing behavior at the cost of others, for the sake of that behavior. As you've observed, while I can be harsh, annoying, abrasive, and rude... I don't do that.

Shall I cite all your recent responses to Sweetpea by way of refutation? Even following him/her/it to threads where he/she/it is the only participant?

You have made some good contributions and display a fun sense of humour. Maybe a bit more Bruce Banner and a bit less Hulk, though?

PS. I appreciate Norma's witty acerbity too.

Countertrolling has a rich and storied history that my people worship as their sun god.

Still at it?LOL.. .. people, poor Yorik.. (sorry, I meant Deadalus...) will have their own opinions, and too often might be in conflict with our personal animosities..Norma doesn't know much but she does recognize damaged ego enhanced by an obsessive nature, with the additional handicapped of not being able to see oneself in the glare of reality.My condolences. But keep it up by all means.... there is a pattern here of once having been given enough rope, figurative suicide will eventually occur.Easy come, easy go.Los gusanos come in, los gusanos go out.

Norma Manna Blum

Skepticism: " Norma, you poor sad lonely alcoholic. You entire life is devoted to interrupting other people's posts on this forum, regardless of the topic, to tell them what's wrong with them. The irony is, here you are doing it again, with this very post. Your fanciful card games, movie sojourns and exciting overseas trips, that all take place within the four walls of an aged care retirement home, do not suggest your own children offered you the care, I gave my parents."

Daedalus wrote:In short, a bully engages in self-aggrandizing behavior at the cost of others, for the sake of that behavior. As you've observed, while I can be harsh, annoying, abrasive, and rude... I don't do that.

Shall I cite all your recent responses to Sweetpea by way of refutation? Even following him/her/it to threads where he/she/it is the only participant?

You have made some good contributions and display a fun sense of humour. Maybe a bit more Bruce Banner and a bit less Hulk, though?

PS. I appreciate Norma's witty acerbity too.

Countertrolling has a rich and storied history that my people worship as their sun god.

Norma doesn't know much but she does recognize damaged ego enhanced by an obsessive nature, with the additional handicapped of not being able to see oneself in the glare of reality.

I have to wonder if the switch to third person is some kind of desperate attempt to realize that you're describing yourself. Probably not, but it is surprising to hear that level of personal insight in an odd turn of phrase. Projection and denial, your name is Normie.

"Propaganda is a monologue which seeks not a response, but an echo." (W.H. Auden) "Given time and plenty of paper, philosophers can prove anything." (Robert Heinlein)"The map is not the territory." (Alfred Korzybski)“You’re in the desert, you see a tortoise lying on its back, struggling, and you’re not helping — why is that?" (Bladerunner)